Wednesday, 7 January 2015

How to celebrate the New Year in Japan

In England for New Years Day you either stay in bed with a massive hangover, rush to the shops for the sales, or go out for a family meal because, you know, you haven't eaten enough over the past few weeks. However in Japan New Year is a three day event from January 1st to the 3rd and there are are lots of rituals and traditions.

1. Watch bell ringing at a temple

At 12 o'clock when the new year starts, bells at temples are rung 108 times which symbolize the 108 human sins in Buddhist belief. It is believed that the ringing of the bells rids everyone of their sins from the previous year.

2. View the sunrise

January 1st is thought of as a very auspicious day in Japan and many people will get up early in order to view the first sunrise of the year.

3. Go to a shrine

During the three day period it is a tradition to go to a shrine and pray for a good year. The most popular shrines, such as Heian Jingu in the photo below, attract very large crowds.

4. Give otoshidama

While children in Japan may only get a few christmas presents, they can look forward to getting otoshidama from close family relatives. Otoshidama is money given to children on New Years Day in decorated envelopes.

5. Eat oshechi ryori

Osechi ryori is a meal prepared before the new year starts. Lots of it is made so that you don't have to do any cooking for the first three days of the year. In theory it sounds good, in practice? Well by the third day you do get a bit fed up of eating the same food.

6. Send New Years cards

New
Years cards (nengajo) are sent to all friends, family and co-workers
and usually feature the Chinese zodiac animal of the year, this year
it's the sheep. Even if you send them early the post office will keep
them and then deliver them all together on New Years Day.

7. Decorate your entrance

Everyone decorates the entrance to their home or business with ornaments made from straw and bamboo. They're like a New Years wreath.

That's interesting that they prepare meals for three days in advance. Do you have any idea why that's a tradition? I love that getting up for the first sunrise is a tradition - one that I could definitely consider starting.

What an interesting post! I love seeing how the same holiday is celebrated in such different ways around the world. I've always wanted to visit Japan but I hear that it can be difficult to navigate with the lack of English that is spoken. How have you found it to be?

Thank you glad you found it interesting! It's true that most people aren't confident in speaking English but as long as you stay in the cities then you should have no (major) trouble navigating around as lots of signs are in English and you can always point and mime! x